William Rayfet Hunter

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Sunstruck

AN OBSERVER BEST NEW NOVELIST 2025

WINNER OF THE #MERKY BOOKS 2022 NEW WRITERS' PRIZE

'Sticky, twisting and dangerous . . . compels, unravelling the fraught strings that keep the elite class together and asking if an outsider can ever truly belong in their fold'

REBECCA K REILLY

'This summer's hottest read'

SUNDAY TIMES

'Beautifully written and well-paced . . . builds tension as it approaches an exciting revelation'

JACQUELINE CROOKS

'Very hard to put down . . . A truly gripping story about privilege and perspective from a writer with a sharp pen and a wicked sense of humour whose incredible career is only just beginning'

ORE AGBAJE-WILLIAMS

'Smart, bracing, sexy . . . I was completely gripped'

JACK PARLETT

'A stunning and tender debut. Sultry and compulsive. Full of heart'

SOULA EMMANUEL

It's summer and a young man walks through the gates of a luxurious mansion in the South of France. At the dinner table, the Blake siblings await him: Lily, his carefree friend from university; Dot, the rebellious younger sister; and Felix - handsome, charismatic and guarded.

Between sun-drenched days spent lounging by the pool and nights blurring into endless, opulent parties, the man is captivated by Felix's restless allure. As his desire grows, the chance to become part of the family and their world of money and power starts to feel within reach.

But the idyllic haze of summer fades as they return to London and the cracks in the Blakes' careful facade begin to show. With the two men tormented by demons of their own, their bond is increasingly tested and pulled apart at the seams. Their secrets and the choices they make will change not only their lives, but the future of those around them.

Sunstruck is a dazzling and poignant exploration of race, status and the parts of ourselves we risk losing when we fall in love.

'Poignant, tender, and wonderfully honest'

CHLOE MICHELLE HOWARTH

'Rich and complex'

COSMOPOLITAN